Hottuning coilovers for polo gti $950 fitted

[thepowercosmic]

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The 'bells and whistles' fully adjustable ones still give a tooth rattling ride, and once they're adjusted and on the car will you really be changing them again???....

While I agree with you to a point, that once adjusted, not many people will be changing them again.

But where I must strongly disagree with you is your point about the tooth rattling ride.

While I don't want to sound like I'm bragging, because I know that there are much better coilovers than mine, I do consider mine to be fully adjustable. The coilovers that I have on my car do not provide anywhere near a tooth rattling ride but rather a well controlled smooth and predictable feel. Ask anyone that's driven my car.

Which brings me to the moot point of me reading and replying back to this thread. I originally thought that this thread might be about HSD coilovers.

I'd also like to add, I don't own a Polo and you get what you pay for.

[DubSteve]

Coilovers, in general, are track orientated and have firm rebound rates. Great on smooth tracks, but they let the tyres skip over bumps leading to less grip and more understeer. The 'bells and whistles' fully adjustable ones still give a tooth rattling ride, and once they're adjusted and on the car will you really be changing them again??? I can't think of anyone that does for road use. It's an expensive way of getting a car that won't handle as well as a standard suspension kit under everyday conditions. However, if you intend on doing a lot of track days, they're brilliant.

How can you say that,I compared two VRs that I have ne standard height and the other with a set of height and dampness adjustable, the difference in everyday is amazing, more control of the road and I find I had better grip. Better than stock suspension!

Also it goes to the point of saying that for the price of the Hottuning coilovers they seem to be a decent set, then again I also go back to thinking that you get what you pay for.

[The_Hawk]

How can you say that,I compared two VRs that I have ne standard height and the other with a set of height and dampness adjustable, the difference in everyday is amazing, more control of the road and I find I had better grip. Better than stock suspension!

Also it goes to the point of saying that for the price of the Hottuning coilovers they seem to be a decent set, then again I also go back to thinking that you get what you pay for.

A standard suspension kit is usually a compromise between handling, comfort reliabilty and price.

Lower suspension gives less travel so you will get a rougher ride, although the degree will vary depending on spring and rebound rates. Lower suspension also means less body roll so better handling. Couple that with strut braces for less body flex and it starts to come together.

Cheaper non adjustable coils are good for lots of people since they will never adjust them. Ever. Hell I'd bet that most people won't even change the height after they are put in.

In short yes my ride quality it less than what it was at stock, but not so much that it would bother most people. Handling is much improved, in truth if I got half the handling benifits I would still do it, it really is that much better.

As for you get what you pay for... prices are set by two factors, cost of manufacture and supply/demand. Manufacture costs are low, we are talking a pretty mature technology here so your left with supply and demand. Historically the demand was low so to recoup manufacture costs and turn a profit prices were higher. Now as more people buy into what used to be a very specialist market prices will drop. IMHO the makers of high price brand name product are used to charging so much and don't want to charge less... as long as people keep paying, they will keep charging.

Consider what makes a non adjustable coilover over a stock item anyway?
Essentially it's a thread and some bolts round the outside, otherwise it's a glorified shock As long as it's made from the right metals, it's all good.

There is some arguement for things with lifetime warranty, but consider the premium your paying for that, then consider how long you will keep the car and how often you would need to replace your "cheap" option before it would matter... then consider how often that is really likely.

[DubSteve]

Interesting there Aaron you also have to take into fact that the quality of the coilover ie some made with better quality metals and I know its been said before but thats also a big factor. There is also the point where people might feel that the cheaper option was a better ride for them, this is usually the factor as I found it was the other way around lol.

[The_Hawk]

Interesting there Aaron you also have to take into fact that the quality of the coilover ie some made with better quality metals and I know its been said before but thats also a big factor.

Very true, build quality will always be a consideration, but there is a point where better isn't actually better for a given applications.
I'm sure the stupidly expensive setups used in rally cross are insanely good by comparison, but while it's nice to buy the top of the line and there has always been the rule of thumb to 'buy the best you can afford', there is a point at which the additional costs are not justified.
Yes you wouldn't buy a product if it would break/bend/warp over the first missed (or should I say hit) pot hole, but if the product holds up well in daily use on the road (or even the ocasional track day) it can't be a bad compromise.

Having said all that, it really depends on the car and what your going to do with it. Yes if it's an all out track car the 'better' more expensive option may be warranted, but if it's a road car and if your spending 50% the value of your car, maybe it's not. Even 10% the value might be questionable in a road car when there are options at less than one thrid that cost that may very well last the lifetime of your car.

[Bug_racer]

There are some factors that are being missed when parts are sold here .
Public liability and insurance - As an importer for a part you are deemed the manufacturer of the product and take all responsibility of that given product . This type of insurance costs a fortune and sometimes hits double figures even for a small operation ! If a coilover/shock/spring was to fail causing damage and it was traced down to the suspension then your car insurance would be chasing the company that imports these products , if the company that imports these products doesnt have any insurance or you yourself imported the parts then its your liability thats at stake . Would hate to be in this position if you hit a Ferrari or drove through a shop front !

Manufacturing costs - A vast majority of the cheaper coilover kits are now coming from China / India . Some of the quality is well below par and there are a few kits that wouldnt even met TUV approval . Before you buy Id be making sure it has TUV approval if its a cheaper kit , all the more expensive kits usually pass with flying colours .

Shopfront and support - Anyone who imports coilovers should have a shopfront and somewhere where they can rebuild coilovers and test shocks . Would you really deal with someone who just makes a quick buck selling parts on the side without any backing if anything was to go wrong ? Just recently an importer for bodykits / exhausts disappeared after taking multiple orders and now cant be found .

The suspension parts itself - The biggest test for any suspension part is motorsport itself . I dont know anyone on this forum that has race level experience to test coilovers to the limit (I could be wrong) , but there are plenty of weekend warriors so we have plenty of people willing to give it a go . On a European car level there is very few actually grass roots racing on the lower end models cars . So , who is gonna hire a track so we can do some real "comparisons" <rubs hands>

[The_Hawk]

All good points, knowing that when you order something that you will get it is a factor, although not really part of this discussion.

Support, or lack there of is also a fair point. Most decent sellers offer a warranty on the product, even if it means you have to pay to freight the things to another country, mind you with some of the low cost options it's probably cheaper just to buy another set. But at that point you should be asking yourself if the "cheaper" option is actually worth it.

Motorsport testing. Yep, brand names are used in motorsport and are tested to their limits, no doubt. But like I said, most people won't go anywhere near those limits. So while I won't deny the brand names are proven better, that still doesn't mean the cheaper options aren't just as good, they just aren't proven, and like I said most people may only need 50% of those limits so the cheaper option is very viable.

TUV approvals, I agree that getting an approved kit is well worth it, but even the lowest cost options from VenomMotorSports in the UK are TUV approved so I think we can safely assume that it's possible if not probable that most kits will be TUV approved. Still something to worth checking before you buy anything.

Insurance... There is a hairy one. Something most people would never consider. Also something I don't know enough about to make any really informed comments beyond general wonderings.

Whats the likelyhood that things would be taken as far as all that? I understand that when talking insurance you need to assume the worst, but again, most things in most cases wouldn't go past the assessor saying, yep you crashed your car... Do they really investigate which part broke to the degree that would be required to take something to court because I am reasonably confident a single assessors opinion would hold much weight.
Maybe if the part failed causing you to spear off course into a group of kindergarten children on a field trip to the world cutest puppy convention being hosted by the pregnant womens association a full inquest would happen...
Also, from memory, my shocks have little or no markings as to who made them meaning the next owner wouldn't know who to point at, sure that usually means it's the fault of the owner but I highly doubt that a pre purchase inspection would have any issue with my kit allowing them to make the choice to not buy my car or to replace the suspension.

I don't really mean to treat this part so lightly, and I will highlight I don't really know nearly enough about this side of things but it would be *very* interesting to hear from an insurance person on how these things actually go.

Long story short, I think that while you have made valid points that anyone thinking about the cheaper options should be aware of, I still think there is hefty premium that isn't entirely warranted for the brand name products.

[Flaps]

Manufacturing costs - A vast majority of the cheaper coilover kits are now coming from China / India . Some of the quality is well below par and there are a few kits that wouldnt even met TUV approval . Before you buy Id be making sure it has TUV approval if its a cheaper kit

QFT

[evorobin]

Before you buy Id be making sure it has TUV approval if its a cheaper kit , all the more expensive kits usually pass with flying colours.

Since you mention it I have a copy of the TUV approval for these. Anyone that sells stuff that hasn't been properly approved is on a hiding to nothing!

[Edra]

Im buyin em, not a great deal of adjustability, hence the price, but i don't need massive adjustability, Considering pedders charge 600-800$ for some generic spring,.. 950$ fitted for this level of coil over makes em a bargain,
im going to set the nice and soft.